#Sierra Bashes Peter
55 messages in this thread
All,
Here is a rather heated response to my question of weather Sierra will
support AGA Amigas. I guess they are tired of us asking. Firs read my
message then decide if Josho was right to launch a full attack on me.
Peter,
I wouldn't take the post too personally. Actually he hit the nail on the
head. He does sound a little bitter (maybe he was burned one too many times).
It's a shame that they are dropping the Amiga, even though their games were IBM
"ports," their childrens learning software (mixed-up mothergoose, etc) was some
of the best.
Alan Henry
James,
Gee, how could you tell I was burned one too many times? <g>
We didn't want to drop Amiga support…we kept it going a long, long time. But
the stakes in the computer game industry have gotten steeper: there are a lot
more companies producing games, and yet the market did not grow at all in 1992.
So there's a lot more competition for the same number of dollars. That's
forced a lot of unpleasant decisions — we laid of 10% of our staff just a few
months ago, and other game companies have made much LARGER layoffs — and we
can only support those platforms that show the most potential for profit. I'm
not sure why Peter takes that personally.
–Josh
Josh,
As far as I can tell there is only one flight sim still being priduced for
the Amiga (Fighter Duel). Too bad you couldn't have kept A10 going…:>{
wmc – via Autopilot!
Peter,
I'm sorry if you feel I was "bashing" you. I don't think I was, and I don't
see anything vindictive in my response. (I am a BIT disturbed that the private
response I sent to your letter was posted publically; had I wanted it posted
publically, I would have done so. In the future, I hope you can respect that a
private post should remain private unless you get permission from the sender.
And I didn't mean to bash Amiga, either. Amiga was *my* first choice of
computers when I started computing.
But the decision Sierra made was one of practicality, and I'm relieved that
others can see that as well. We truly did hold out as long as we could, when
most others were dropping support, and we continued our support for years after
others had already dropped it. I assure you that Ken's decision to drop Amiga
support was neither a fast nor an easy one, but I maintain that it was,
business-wise, a necessary one.
–Josh
As an Amiga owner for five years, and one who uses the Amiga 10-16 hours a
day in a business setting, I have to admit that Sierra's decision was
indeed probably the best one, given the reasons you cited.
Your personal reply to Peter seemed quite balanced and honest – as opposed
to the diatribes of those who refuse to look beyond their 'computer of
choice'.
I am sorry to see Sierra leave the Amiga arena. (I loved Rise of the
Dragon, and just wish I had an AGA mode of it. :^( ['You know what really
bothers me? . . .It's all those IBM games that keep getting ported to the
Amiga, don't they know what the Amiga's capable of?' – Andy Rooney] :^)
Oh well, keep up the good work. Maybe if the Amiga can hold out for a few
more years, you guys might come back. (Yeah, and monkeys might . . .:^)
Erik Flom
Erik,
No, no, it's not a "yeah, and monkeys might fly…" situation. Truly, it
isn't.
As I've mentioned in the last message I just posted, Sierra at one time stopped
supporting the Mac because of a lack of consumer sales. We recommenced Mac
support a year or two later when sales of Macs went way up (after Apple
introduced all the low-end models).
So it COULD happen.
Thanks for your patience and understanding. As someone who designs games for
Sierra, I would only stand to gain from support of a wider array of systems. I
don't think we'll ever be releasing 800x600x262K-color games on FLOPPY for the
Amiga, but who knows…any low-priced Amiga CD-ROM in the works that you know
of? It might change everything.
–Josh
My comment was merely the jaundiced feelings of a long-time Amiga owner.
I was unaware that Sierra dropped, then later resumed development of Mac
games. It's almost enough to give me hope.
Naah, I know C= will do its best to keep vital tools like a system
standard CD-ROM driver from coming to market. And marketing? (hah, a lost
cause!)
Glad to hear you're not averse to developing for the Amiga, should Sierra
decide to pick up support of the Amiga again. :^)
Erik Flom
P.S. Got any cool CD-ROMS coming out soon? (Like in the Laura Bow series.)
My girlfriend just ordered a Toshiba 3401 CD-ROM drive, and I used my
Sprint-Sierra free game coupon for a copy of Willy Beamish on CD. I'm
looking forward to checking it out. I've heard good things about just
plain old Willy Beamish, so here's hoping the CD adds more than just a
soundtrack?
Erik,
WILLY BEAMISH has gotten both lumps and accolades, depending on which magazines
you read. <g> Proceed thusly advised!
I'm working on the CD version of FREDDY PHARKAS, FRONTIER PHARMACIST — it
should be ready late July or thereabouts, provided we decide not to throw in
the kitchen sink like we did with KQ6-CD (which should be released any day now,
and stars Robby Benson — the BEAST of Disney's BEAUTY & THE BEAST — as
Alexander, the lead character. We went to town on this CD and it should be
fabulous. KQ6 is a VERY good game by itself, and got great reviews, and since
we spared no expense on the CD, expect a lot of good things.
–Josho
That's right . . . I remember seeing a news-story about that awhile back,
and they were showing Robby record some of his lines.
I look forward to both KQ6 & FREDDY PHARKAS! Wanna give us a hint as to
what kind of game FREDDY PHARKAS is going to be? (Arcade, strategy, FRP,
interactive movie, etc.)
Thanks,
Erik Flom
Erik,
FREDDY PHARKAS, FRONTIER PHARMACIST, which is already out on floppy, is a
codesign between Al "Leisure Suit Larry" Lowe and myself. It's the first
Computer Western, a slightly ribald, definitely silly Old West adventure about
a gunslinger from the East who gives it all up for his love of Pharmacology.
<g>
–Josho
Thanks for the info.
I've worked for Epyx, SSI, and Spectrum HoloByte, but I just don't follow
games that closely anymore. (Something about being a game tester for
several years in the early part of my career seems to have tempered my
ability/interest in computer games. :^)
Keep On Toastin'
Erik Flom
Erik,
I wonder if you had to work under the conditions that the US Commodore
operation had to run under, could you do a better job?
If so–how?
There is no amount of marketing in the world that would have stopped the
PC onslaught.
-mark=
Otto Pilot Engaged..
Yeah, I'd agree with that too.
The guy that convinced ME to buy my first Amiga is now one of Bill Gate's
millionare employees. (Over 2000 millionares at the comapny, last I
heard.)
I think the Amiga could have done FAR better if they had come out with
their products about 1-2 years ahead of the actual release date. If they
had done this about the time the 2500 was released, they'd be in a much
more competitive situation. (Whether that was feasible is another story.)
It IS too bad that C= is hurting, but at least they've has sold another
4000. I'm going to be upgrading to the Toaster 4000.
Had NewTek not supported the AGA chipset, my next computer purchase was
DEFINITELY going to be a Mac, or IBM.
Keep On Toastin'
Erik Flom
> Naah, I know C= will do its best to keep vital tools like a system
> standard CD-ROM driver from coming to market.
Well, they _did_ license ARexx. They _did_ succeed in getting the RDB and
SCSI-direct command set adopted. So they do have some good ideas….
// Brian — Cruising on AutoPilot…..
\X/
Josh,
I think what Erik was problably implying is that for the AMiga to take
advantage of the "entropy rise" in the OS market, CBM has got to actually
get out and sell the machine, which means treating developers right,
building a dealer network, training dealers, treating dealers right…
THATs what's going to require the monkies to buy computers… :^}
wmc – via Autopilot!
Wayne,
I definitely agree. Much of the difficulty I think publishers have had in the
past is CBM's track record of supporting their own machines, from a marketing
standpoint. Trouble is, CBM now has a history of blowing smoke, so developers
are doubly wary of CBM whenever CBM promises a new push, a new breakthrough
system, a new ad campaign, whatever. It's a self-perpetuating problem, one
that will only be solved when CBM actually does break through with something.
I don't know if anyone would agree with this, but I've had a theory for years
about what CBM did wrong initially. When the Amiga came on the market, MS-DOS
was not yet a common *household* computer (it was still primarily an office
system; EGA was still very expensive and there was a severe lack of household
utilities and games for MS-DOS). The Apple II+/e/c and the C64 were definitely
on their way out; the Mac was going nowhere and neither was the IIgs. If
Commodore had positioned the Amiga as, primarily, a GAME/HOUSEHOLD computer,
they could have stolen the niche that had previously been filled by the C64 and
Apple II. Instead, they positioned the Amiga as a powerful graphics
workstation and all-around system…which isn't something most users are
interested in. The "all-around system" position is so vague and mushy that
nobody knew what to think. And then, of course, there were distribution
problems, since CBM didn't want the thing in toy stores. Instead of getting an
Amiga, American users bought MS-DOS machines and Nintendos instead to fill the
same need that the C64 used to fill.
The "GAME/HOUSEHOLD" position is exactly the position CBM took in the UK, for
some reason. And it succeeded in a major way there. Most home users in the UK
don't have videogame machines and don't have MS-DOS machines; they have an
Amiga to take the place of both. That's why the Amiga is the top-selling
computer in the UK, and has been for a long time. It was a clear,
easy-to-understand position. Had they taken the same position with the US
market, they might've passed the 5 million mark four years ago.
–Josh
Josh,
You've hit the nail on the head! When I bought my Amiga 500 a couple of
years ago, I felt that I was getting the ultimate resource/entertainment
tool I could for the buck. It didn't take long for me to see that
productivity software was scarce, but from a general user's point of view
it was still better and easier to use than anything out for the MSDOS
machines.
Games for the Amiga were quite popular at the local Software Etc, and
there was a great deal to choose from. The trend however has been to
promote the Amiga as a multi media machine, and in fact item like New
Tek's Video Toaster has helped it earn a small niche for itself. That's
okay for video jocks willing to fork over $2,000 + for a toaster system,
but what about the casual user who wants to run a few applications at home
and play the current games? The answer isn't with the Amiga, so I went out
and got a 486SX, and cursed CBM for abandoning users like me.
How long can the Amiga survive, in a recessed economy with software
publishers competing for user dollars? No too long, especially if software
chains like Software Etc. have dropped support and dealers are umpteen
miles away from the user base, forcing them to shop mail order and thus
adding another nail to the coffin because Amiga dealers will be going out
of business. It's a catch 22.
It was with a little sadness that I gave up my beloved Amiga, but a
helluva a lot more bitterness.
\\ ===>>> Angel Pagan <<<===//
Angel,
I was hoping that it was only my local Software ETC. (local, well…50 miles
away, but to the area Sierra's in, that's local) that was liquidating its stock
of Amiga games, but I guess not, given what you've said.
It's a little staggering that CBM has survived this long. Back when I was
looking to buy an Amiga as my first home computer back in 1986, CBM was
desperately fending off bankruptcy by trying to get third-part loans to support
itself. Somehow, they've held on for a long time, but I agree with you: in
this economy, it's going to be tougher than ever. Thanks to a small-but-mighty
clan of Amiga devotees, there'll be support for at least a good while yet, but
you ask a good question when you ask how long they can continue.
–Josh
Josh,
I made the painful switch to MSDOS recently, for me the the future seems
to be SVGA, not AGA. What Sierra has to remember is the many users who
supported the Amiga versions of their products, because they become
potential customers once they enter the world of MSDOS. What if any, is
Sierra's policy regarding platform upgrades? I have a few Amiga titles
(A10, Red Baron) that I would love to get MSDOS version of.
As for the liguidating of stock, why are there so many Sierra titles
priced in this discard heap any way? <g> I see now why Sierra and other
game publishers have to cover their losses by discontinuing support at the
expense of leaving loyal users bitter.
You're absolutely right about CBM. It's continuing existence defies the
laws of business as we know it. IMHO the Amiga would be dead if it wasn't
for these three companies: 1)New Tek (and we all know how well they get
along with CBM <g> 2) GVP (Mediocrity and poor customer support) and 3)
Centuar, who I can't say anything negative about.
\\ ===>>> Angel Pagan <<<===//
Angel,
I'm not positive what the upgrade path is from one system to another, but it's
definitely worth checking out. If you're interested in following up,
Chris/Sierra On-Line 76004,2143 (EMail or GAMAPUB) would be familiar with the
details.
What did Centuar produce??
–Josh
Josh,
Centuar makes Opal vison, a 32 bit video board that has sold like hotcakes
at many Amiga shows. They compete in the same Video Toaster market once
dominated by New Tek.
\\ ===>>> Angel Pagan <<<===//
Also in Germany/Switzerland the Amiga was sold as "GAME" machine. Now most
of these Gamers changed to MS-DOS and we have big trouble to get rid of
the "Game-Console-with-floppy-drive" image.
In these days, if we have had 640 x 400 flicker-free graphics and some
good productivity-software, I think, many of the PC's, Ataris and MACs
now installed in offices would instead be Amigas…
Another problem we had/have here in Europe is software piracy.
Sum of this: The Amiga was not accepted as business computer, lack of
good graphics (4096 colors were nice, but the interlace-flicker was
the killer) and lack of productivity software. Software was not
developed because lack of sales. The same thing with games. May be
that 4 million Amigas are sold here in Europe, but when on 100
installed Games only 1 was purchased, then I dont wonder why there
are no more new games for the amiga.
MARCUS Flying on AMIGA with MOTOROLA 68030 inside and AutoPilot
engaged
Marcus,
Perhaps that also explains the Amiga's slow decline in the UK as well.
I've heard rumors for years that piracy was worse for one platform
than another; i.e. that piracy on the Atari ST was worse than piracy
on the PC, and that piracy on the Amiga was worse than piracy on the
PC as well. I've tended not to believe this, because I know how much
piracy there is in the MS-DOS world, and it's hard to imagine it
being MORE rampant on any system than it is on MS-DOS systems.
Could it be a regional problem rather than a platform problem? For
example, I recall hearing (this was years ago) that Korea and Israel
had the worst piracy problems on ALL systems, basically because of
poor distribution of the legitimate flavors of software. I can't
understand why the owners of ONE system would be more predisposed to
pirate software than the owners of ANOTHER system. I wanna say,
"It's only hardware, it's not a state of mind," but maybe that's
naive…
Josh, I had heard the piracy on the ST was far worse than on any
other system. Bad enough, in fact, that it killed software
development for that platform. I do know that one of our Amiga user
group members attended an ST user group some years ago, back when
there still were ST user groups. He reported the entire meeting was
a giant software copying session. It was literally ALL they did. I
think it was an "Atari user thing", as piracy was particularly bad
for the 8-bit Arari as well.
Karl,
I suppose if software supplies dried up enough for a particular system,
peoples' scruples about copying would tend to vanish. Perhaps that's exactly
what happened to the ST. And age probably has something to do with it, too —
a system that appeals more to children is going to have a tougher time
appealing to their sense of morality. If Nintendo software came on writeable
disks rather than cartridges, I'm sure there'd be tens of millions of pirated
MARIO BROTHERS games floating around. 🙁
–Josh
MARCUS,
You are certainly right about the software piracy problem. It is still
very blatent here in Scotland. At the local `barras' market in Glasgow
there are at least four vendors dealing in pirated AMIGA games and all of
them do a roaring trade, with large numbers of people waiting in line.
They have been `raided' onb numerous occasions by the police but are
usually up and operating again the next week. Amazing and quite
unbelievable!
Early on in the AMIGA's history they used to sell professional software,
like ProPage or ProDraw V1 for roughly 10 pounds. That is a considerable
saving on the commercial price – but lethal for the company's concerned.
And vast numbers of the games being produced at the time. These days they
only stock games and do not seem to deal in professional software – at
least not openly. I think if one was to ask, however, they would supply
it. Recently a vendor was complaining about problems he was having with
the ADpro software and was taking in a lot of returned disks from people.
It was costing him money. I have talked a lot of my workmates – almpost a
dozen into buying AMIGAS and all of them buy the games software from such
sources and further swop among themselves these same purchases. Recently
they came to me for help in fixing problems some of them were having in
getting their computer to work properly. You know what it was? Viruses,
There must have been dozens and dozens of infected disks. My contribution
to the copy disk activity is to give them all copies of virus killer,
which is available on PD. Promiscuous games purchasing from fundamentally
unhealthy sources can do serious damage I think.
I have not bought a pirated program in years now. If a serious virus
ripped through my hard drive now I'd go crazy. It ain't worth the risk and
it is also bad for the commercial AMIGA community.
IAIN.
IAIN.
> Thanks for your patience and understanding. As someone who designs
> games for Sierra, I would only stand to gain from support of a wider
> array of systems. I don't think we'll ever be releasing
> 800x600x262K-color games on FLOPPY for the Amiga, but who knows…any
> low-priced Amiga CD-ROM in the works that you know of? It might change
> everything.
Let's assume an A1200 user wants a CD-ROM drive. Since he only the
standard 2MB in the machine, he'll need a RAM expansion anyway (Especially
since it will mean an 100% increase in system speed!). So we are looking
for a SCSI/RAM solution.
GVP A1200 SCSI/RAM+ w/ 4MB ~~ $550.00 (Based off a posted price in a
TENEX ad.)
Chinon 425 Series Ext CD-ROM ~~ $459.00 (NCA Peripherials in
Sunnyvale,CA)
CD-ROM Drivers (AsimWare) ~~ 67.00 (estimated street price)
—————————————
Total 1076.00 (eeps!)
The biggest "problem" with Amiga CD-ROM usage is that you MUST use
SCSI CD-ROMs. This effectively doubles the price of the drive. Never
mind the cost of the controller, but this should come down as
competition, and larger A1200 sales, exert downward pressure on the
controller prices.
A Sony proprietary CD-Rom system for PC's is $219 (Sony 31a w/o demo
CD-Roms). The Amiga may never reach this price point unles C= cuts
one heck of a deal with Chinon (who, as many know, manufacture all
C='s HD floppy disk drives).
Here's a thought, taken from IBM's OS/2 2.1 upgrade deal — if the
user wants floppies, he pays a premium for them. IBM OS/2 2.1 will
sell for $30 LESS is you take it as a CD-ROM.
Yowch. So you're depending on TWO technologies to decrease in price,
each of which much become popular enough to drive down prices, before
Amiga CD-ROM can become affordable enough to become commonplace?
Seems like CBM may be putting itself at a disadvantage by preventing
competition among third-party peripheral suppliers. Or are they
afraid of havoc?
Of the two technologies — SCSI CD-ROMs and Amiga Controllers. Both
are bound to come down. The new Macs — to my knowledge — still
have SCSI ports as standard equipment. A couple of the IBM sound
cards now implement SCSI interfaces for CD-ROM drives because users
cursed them for forcing them to buy one manufacturer's drives. (The
Sound Blaster Pro uses a Mitsumi CD-ROM interface for example.) Since
SCSI CD-ROM drives can be used on Amiga's Macs, and PC-Clones, their
prices are bound to come down.
A1200 SCSI controllers — well let's see. GVP makes one, ICD and IVS
are coming out with them. Microbotics can't be too far behind. Three
or Four companies are going to be trying to sell them to a fairly
large A1200 marketplace. C='s 1200 sales show no signs of slowing
down anytime soon, so the possible market is getting larger, not
smaller. So, let's see: we have 1200's selling like hotcakes, so lots
of people will be wanting to upgrade them in the future. We also have
three or four companies in the US alone looking seriously at the 1200
expansion market. This equates to downward price pressure no matter
whose economic theories you subscribe to.
Brian,
"…1200 sales show no signs of slowing down anytime soon…"
I don't know if that is accurate in the US. I've spoken with 3 dealers in
various geographical locations in the US and all say 1200 sales have
almost died but 4000 sales have dramatically increased (ie., my dealer is
now selling 4000s 3 to 1 over 1200s).
-sja
I'm not surprised that the sales of the 4000 are up- the '030 is
cheap enough that it is competitive with an accelerated 1200. And it
is an obviously superior machine.
Karl,
When I referenced the 4000 I meant the A4000/040. My dealer is selling more
1200s than the A4000/EC030.
Interesting. I guess the U.S. really *is* a power-user's market. <g>
//
-Karl \X/ Amiga and Autopilot: The *only* way to fly!
I'll have to check with my dealer, but I think he still has trouble
keeping them stocked. I'd be the first to say that I wish I had a 4000,
but not until after I get the 3000 paid off!
I can see the 1200 slowing down, I just didn't expect it to happen so
quickly. The 4000/030 may have had something to do with this, it's
probably under many people's "max comfortable price" point. If I had my
3000 paid off, I would have bought it instead of my 1200. As is stands,
I'm wishing there was a "real" network I could get the 1200 on. A PCMCIA
Ethernet card would let me use the 3000's drives on the 1200 without too
much mucking about. The 3000 would make a great "File Server" on an Amiga
LAN…
// Brian — Cruising on AutoPilot…..
\X/
I'd counter that you could get a perfectly useful Toshiba 3201 (two models back
from the 3401 they sell now) for about $250. It slips into your A2000's 5 1/4
drive bay. Connect it to your SCSI adapter, buy the $50 Xetec driver and
presto, you've got CDROM for $300.
What you're really saying is that it's expensive to expand an A1200. Or that
it's expensive and dangerous to develop an Amiga-oriented expansion card and
hope to make a profit. I'm sure someone could make a PC-like bare bones
interface to one of these non-SCSI CDROMs, but they'd be risking a lot: the
price of the Amiga expansion card, changes in el cheapo CD technology, etc.
SCSI is more useful and less expensive in the long run.
> I'd counter that you could get a perfectly useful Toshiba 3201 (two
> models back from the 3401 they sell now) for about $250. It slips into
> your A2000's 5 1/4 drive bay. Connect it to your SCSI adapter, buy the
> $50 Xetec driver and presto, you've got CDROM for $300.
1 – I wasn't referring to A2000 expansion. The initial question was about
adding CD-ROM capability to an AGA Amiga. I picked the 1200 because,
well, I have a 1200. An internal solutiion will not, of course, work
in a 1200.
2 – Not many people would know enough to look back a couple of model
numbers for a less expensive drive. Unless they bought the drivers
FIRST and looked at the list of supported drives. Something I admit I
should have done. I'd be in better shape with this drive now…
Non-SCSI CD-ROMs shouldn't be used on any system. What would happen if the
company that made the CD-ROM suddenly decided that their CD-ROM line was
no longer profitable? I'll bet one of the reasons that the non-SCSI units
are so inexpensive is that the companies involved know you're stuck with
their stuff. So they WILL get expansion business….
// Brian — Cruising on AutoPilot…..
\X/
Yes, but as I said elsewhere in this thread, buying an A1200 necessarily
limited your expansion options. That has nothing to do with CDROMs. Perhaps
you should cut your losses immediately: dump the A1200 while the price is hot,
then buy an A4000.
If I could have afforded a 4000, I would have bought one. I'm still paying
off the 3000!
// Brian — Cruising on AutoPilot…..
\X/
Josh,
I have to admit that sometimes I see only what I want to see. Your
post was private and that's the way I should have left it. Your company
has the right to develop on whatever platform it chooses. I on the other
hand should not have used the words "very poor decision". With the market
the way it is and with the loses that Sierra has incurred it was probably
the wisest decision. I AM SORRY for turning it around and giving it to
you. I just don't want to admit that we Amiga users may have already
lost. I hate my PC and all I use it for is to play games. If only CBM
had did their job.
In the future I will refrain from reposting private messages. I am
sorry and I do see your point. Guess I'll just have to settle for playing
them on my PC.
Peter M. D'Angelo
Peter,
I know that one's choice of computer is (strangely) a personal and sometimes
sensitive matter. I should have been more sensitive to what was, I'm sure, a
message motivated by your pride in your system and your desire to see it
prosper. And I admit to being bitter(!) about my experiences with CBM, which I
won't go into.
But don't hate your PC! Just treat it as you would treat a slightly addled
relative that you keep up in the attic. It CAN be a source of amusement.
–Josh
> slightly-addled relative that you keep up in the attic <
Gee, that's what my family's been trying to do to ME ever since I
bought this A4000!
> I hate my PC and all I use it for is to play games.
"Hating" a computer is a bit odd, isn't it? Clearly you enjoy the PC when
you're playing games on it so it can't be that awful. Clearly MS-DOS is junk
compared to AmigaDOS, but it's best to just accept a computer as it is, and not
what you want it to be.
PC's are like pickup trucks. Not great transportation, not pretty, but
utilitarian and pretty useful. You can get them in many flavors including ones
that go like a bat out of hell.
Hmmm… what does that make the Amiga in the car analogy? Clearly it gets good
mileage <g>, it's elegantly designed under the hood, but it lacks some options
and is terribly marketed. Volkswagon?
The analogy killer is that people don't buy pickup trucks 'cause seats
and radios for 'em are easy to steal. People DO buy PC's cause its so
easy to steal/share software.
wmc – via Autopilot!
Paul,
I'm not so sure it's all that odd. People spend a lot of money and a lot
of time learing a machine. They do it based on the premise that the time
and money they spend will benefit them in the end; surely they have other
options as to how and where they could spend it.
In the course of this, someone starts the ball rolling by telling them why
the Amiga is "good". Then they use it, and maybe they find out it is, or
it isn't, based on their needs and how well the computer fills them. IN
the end though, they still spend the time and the money. When someone
comes out the other end of an expenditure like that and has what they
consider to be "not enough" to show for it, only the most philosophical of
users will be able to avoid emotion – for time and money are two
currencies most difficult hard to regain once spent, eh? It's not a fra
step from bad feelings to blame, either – and CBM is the likely target.
I think the Amiga's probably comparable to something like a euro-supercar.
You can't find a dealer; you can't find a service center; the users are
very much a "club"; the machine itself is very high performance; you can't
get "options" (software); and you darn near have to send the car to europe
to get it serviced. Oh yeah… and people usually drop their jaws when
they see one go by exhibiting the top levels of performance it's capable
of. :^)
–Ben
…via AutoPilot
Yeah, and when you add everything necessary to use it professionally,
it costs nearly as much as a Ferrari…. 😉
I missed that part. :^)
–Ben
…via AutoPilot
I guess I've become "philosophical", then. While I certainly find differences
between the various computers I've used/use, and I've certainly invested huge
amounts of time and money over the years, I still have never hated a particular
computer. I have fun with 'em all!
There's definitely something unique about the Amiga market, though. The user
passion is high, the manufacturer is certainly "different", and the product is
certainly unique.
Regards, Paul.
I consider myself fortunate to be able to completely ignore the IBM compatible
machines, their operating systems, and their application software. I can do
everything I need or want to do, and do it well, with my Amiga. Essentially, I
can afford to be choosy and to ignore mediocrity.
-larry
LARRY,
Well said and perfectly true.
I would also think the one big advantage of AMIGA software as compared to
PC software are the prices with good, solid AMIGA programs generally being
a lot cheaper than the PC similars.
IAIN.
> good mileage, elegant . . . under the hood, but . . .<
If you include "pragmatic-but-odd functionality" and "people laugh at
the way it looks", you're describing Subaru (and I own one of THEM, too).
Hehe – I actually considered Subaru – and I own one also!
Subaru's certainly had it's share of troubles too. They've bet the farm on the
Impreza it looks like. I'm reasonably interested in an SVX for my next car,
actually.
I did not consider the respnse to be an 'attack'. Nor did I consider it
'heated'.
-larry